I feel a little guilty reviewing books on the bestseller list. After all, anyone can read the bestseller list; these books maybe don’t need more people promoting them. But here it is. I read it, I loved it, and now I will share the love.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp, and Camille Kingsolver Kingsolver, her husband, and two children set out in this vivid nonfiction adventure to spend and document a year spent eating only locally produced food. After years spent living in suburban Arizona, the family moves to rural Appalachia, with the intent, Kingsolver says, of living in a place that contains more than one of the three basic necessities of life. Starting the year with the first asparagus and some trepidation, they head to the farmer’s market to see what they can find. What they end up with is delicious bounty – different things at different times of the year, to be sure, and no bananas – but always good, varied food in the peak of flavor. Trying for the first time to raise enough to eat year-round rather than a small vegetable garden provides room for meditation on the loss of vegetable varieties and the fragility of farmers’ livelihoods, while harvesting their turkeys and chickens brings up the issues of carnivory and the difficulties with both CAFOs and vegetarianism. An early autumn trip to Italy shows a culture where food and culture is still deeply connected to the land. As Kingsolver narrates the year, Hopp steps in as “Dr. Science”, with factual sidebars, while teenaged Camille provides a week’s worth of meals with recipes for each month. It can be a little preachy, but if you already believe that the earth and our diets are in need of some help, it’s inspirational rather than disturbing. All the authors are clearly passionate in showing that eating locally is delicious and doable by anybody with a will and a local farmer’s market or garden. After listening to the audiobook, with Kingsolver’s gently twangy voice, and I were both inspired – I to tomato canning, and he to trying home cheese making, as well as more frequent trips to the farmer’s market. For anyone who cares about good food, this is an essential read.
The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron The most recent Newbery award winner apparently got pulled from a number of libraries (mostly school, I think) because it includes the shocking word “scrotum” on the first page. As overheard by our heroine. It is not mentioned again until the last chapter. Anyway, being the curious type, I thought I would investigate on behalf of you, my loyal readers. 
Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson For those of you going through Harry Potter withdrawal, may I suggest Peter and the Starcatchers? This fast-moving adventure with a sense of humor takes us back to a time when Peter Pan was just Peter, an orphan with a dismal and probably short future. Peter, still the leader of a small gang of orphans, is being sent to a barbarian king on a faraway island, onboard a small and dingy ship. Also onboard is young Molly, apprentice Starcatcher. Apparently, when stars fall on earth, the starstuff causes magical mutations, often harmful, so that it must be removed from earth by the Starcatchers before it can cause too much damage. Sure enough, a large and leaky chest of starstuff features prominently in the plot, as does the evil Captain Stache and his pirate crew. The plot will keep you on the edge of your seat and the characters are charming and believable. The book, for me, restored the magic of Peter Pan that was missing when I reread the original, with its old-fashioned mores. The savages are real people; Molly’s aim in life is not to become a mother ASAP. It’s an origin story well worth reading.
Jack Plank Tells Tales by Natalie Babbitt Long-time favorite Natalie Babbitt (Tuck Everlasting) returns with this delightful collection, sure to be a hit. Cutting the microphone, Jack Plank is a retired pirate, looking for a new career. Every day, he heads out with his landlady’s daughter to try to find a job. Every night, he returns unsuccessfully, but with a tale to tell of why that particular career could never work for him. He couldn’t possibly do work that involved crossing a bridge, for example, because of the experience that a shipmate had with something closely resembling a troll in Nova Scotia, and another shipmate had an experience that put him off wigs forever. Jack Plank does find a job in the end, of course, but by that time, all we want is more stories. The stories belong to that wonderful variety, which are entertaining for an adult without being too scary for the beginning chapter book reader.
California Demon by Julie Kennon I must confess that I couldn’t get through this second book about a Buffy-like demon hunter mom. It’s just that it’s a little too personal at this time. I can’t really enjoy reading about a mother dealing with potty training and demons, when just potty training feels like too much just now. Maybe in 5 or 10 years I’ll be able to joke about it. Meanwhile, if you’re a Buffy fan and are not involved in toddler rearing, you might very well enjoy this.
The No-Cry Discipline Solution by Elizabeth Pantley “No-cry” may sound radical, but this is a gentle and practical guide to parenting. Pantley starts out with a chapter devoted to parenting myths, such as, “If my kids don’t behave all the time, I must be doing something wrong.” Kids will misbehave, and you will do things you’ll wish you hadn’t. Then she covers a basic theory of discipline: understanding why children misbehave, looking at the long term to decide what’s important when dealing with younger children. She has chapters dealing with major everyday problems such as tantrums, whining and hitting. An important and unusual chapter deals with managing your own anger and frustration as a parent. These are the core of the book, but the second half or so is devoted to short sections on a multitude of common problems with targeted solutions, such as biting, trouble with daycare drop-offs and pick-ups, and so on. I don’t agree with her on everything – I’d wish for a more nuanced discussion of praise, for example. I do like the approach, starting with a discussion of each problem, how to prevent it from happening in the first place and what to do when it happens. In an analogy that stuck with me, Pantley says that having just one or two parenting techniques is like having a little sandwich baggy of solutions. If they don’t work, you’re out of luck. She aims instead to offer you a laundry bag full of techniques, for you to practice and find ones that work for you and your family. Pantley may not have any child-related degrees, but she knows what she’s talking about. In addition to four children of her own, ranging from primary school to college, she has done a lot of research, both of the reading and the hands-on variety. Her methods are tested with a couple hundred kids, from several countries, of many ages, and from many different types of families. They are aimed at raising loving, happy and functional adults, as well as maintaining peace and order now. This is an extremely useful and excellent book.
1-2-3 Magic by Thomas W. Phelan I am always suspicious of parenting books that say, “If our method doesn’t work for you, you’re not following the instructions correctly.” Different kids work very differently. At any rate, this is a punishment-based book. Your kids are out to get you, says Phelan, and you’d better punish them quickly before they get out of hand. Don’t talk to them, because kids aren’t capable of reasoning. The only punishment he offers is the time-out, a popular one to be sure, but ineffective for some kids, and emotionally difficult for others. This emphasis on instant obedience without understanding seems geared to produce adults who can say they’re “just following orders”. After you’ve gotten the worst of their bad behavior out of them, you can start using some rewards and praise to encourage good behavior, and then you might actually start to like your kids. The author appears to be a pediatrician who leaves most of the actual kid-rearing to his wife, and this book is based on his experience with patients who have followed his advice and come back and said that it works. There’s a lot of research out there on discipline techniques and their effect on child behavior and psychology, but Phelan doesn’t reference or appear to have read any of it. He is also very rigid, saying, for example, that there is no excuse for parents and children to be in the same bed together ever, even in cases of nightmares, illness, or thunderstorms. 
alibrarymama 